You may be wondering about the difference between marketing and advertising, are they the same thing? We encounter that question every day, and are happy to clear up any misconceptions.
What is Advertising?
In short, advertising is one tactic used as part of a marketing strategy. Oxford defines Marketing as “the action or business of promoting and selling products or services, including market research and advertising.” In other words, marketing consists of advertising, market research, and basically anything else that helps you sell your product or service.
While marketing is a rather broad category, advertising relates specifically to advertisements, or ads for short. Don’t be fooled however, advertising itself is a huge category, with a wide array of options, techniques and price points.
What Types of Advertising are There?
Advertising for the first time can feel like a daunting task. Knowing where to even begin, let alone create, distribute and target ads creates many questions for unfamiliar businesses. Most will work with a marketing company or advertising agency to utilize the expertise of a business that focuses solely on marketing and advertising. However, even when working with an agency, understanding a few of the routes possible will help create the most effective strategy.
Advertising can be broken down into two primary categories: Traditional Advertising and Digital Advertising.
Traditional advertising includes TV and radio ads, printed brochures, flyers and other advertising goods sent through the mail, billboards and public transportation ads, newspaper and magazine ads, product placement and word of mouth.
Most of us are familiar with these forms of advertising, because we interact and encounter them every day. Ever noticed how a certain popular product is mentioned or shown regularly in your favorite movie or show? That’s product placement!
Digital advertising is where things can become a little more unclear, as it is a new and rapidly evolving industry. That said, most of us still encounter it in our daily lives through the use of technology. Have you noticed how a product you mentioned recently to a friend suddenly is shown in your Facebook feed? That’s not magic! It’s a combination of a few things known as data collection and targeting. These are part of mobile advertising, one method which falls under digital advertising. Other types of digital advertising include display ads (such as pop ups and banner ads on websites), native advertising (such as sponsored articles/content), search advertising (promoted search results), social media advertising, podcast advertising, and streaming media advertising (like the ads you see on Hulu).
If your business is ready to start advertising, or you’d like more information on how advertising can help your business, get in touch with us for a free consultation.